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Happy Chinese New Year 2014

Today marks the start of the Chinese Lunar Year, the Year of the Horse. One of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, the horse signifies kindness, strength, and gregariousness. In the larger Chinese astrological cycle, this year is also associated with the element of wood, which makes 2014 the Year of the Wooden Horse. The combination is supposed to signify 12 months of patience and cooperation ahead. People around the world ushered in the new year with firework displays, family get-togethers, temple visits, and street festivals. Collected here are images from several countries where revelers have been welcoming the Wooden Horse's arrival.

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Divers carry a man-made dragon, as part of Chinese New Year dragon blessings to wish all their guests boundless energy in the Year of the Horse at the South East Asia Aquarium at Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore, on January 30, 2014.
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Chicks dyed in various colors are sold in the Chinese district of Binondo on January 31, 2014 in Manila, Philippines. Thousands gathered today to celebrate the Chinese New Year and welcome the Year of the Wooden Horse, with New Year's Day which falls on January 31, 2014.
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People wait for their trains at Hongqiao train station in Shanghai, ahead of Chinese New Year, on January 28, 2014. About 3.62 billion trips will be made during the 40-day Spring Festival travel rush which started from January 16, an official said.
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A 15-meter-long Chinese Dragon, atop the Sydney Harbor bridge with The Sydney Opera House in the background, on January 21, 2014. A troupe of dragon dancers and musicians made their way to the top of the Sydney icon ahead of Chinese New Year celebrations.
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A Visitor passes trees decorated with red lanterns at the Spring Festival Temple Fair for celebrating Chinese Lunar New Year of Horse at the Temple of Earth park in Beijing, China, on January 30, 2014.
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Li Sheng poses after tattoo artist Sun Lan tattooed the image of a horse with wings on his back, ahead of the upcoming Chinese lunar New Year at her studio in Beijng, ON January 19, 2014. Li, the 28 year old office worker said the year of horse gave him an idea of having the horse tattoo on his back and it took 6 days to have the tattoo made.
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A Chinese opera performer puts on make-up before The Beauty of China Opera show at Pakuwon Bllroom in Surabaya, Indonesia, on January 30, 2014. Chinese opera is an important traditional art performance of music and drama which has been performed for over 500 years, however popularity has been on the decline in today's modern society. It performed as part of the Chinese New Year celebrations known as the Spring festival or the Lunar New Year on January 31st, welcoming the Year of the Horse.
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North Korean refugees and their family members bow as a sign of respect to their ancestors in the North, during Lunar New Year celebrations at the Imjingak Pavilion, near the border village of Panmunjom, in Paju, north of Seoul, South Korea, on January 31, 2014. South Korea on Monday proposed that the rival Koreas restart arranging reunions next month for families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War. But still, the North Korea kept silent on South Korea's offer.
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An elderly woman, formerly from North Korea, and her family members bow as a sign of respect to their ancestors in North Korea during Lunar New Year celebrations at the Imjingak Pavilion, near the border village of Panmunjom, in Paju, South Korea, on January 31, 2014.
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Yoo Sang-gak, 90, who was originally from Pyongyang and has brothers in North Korea, hangs a sign bearing the names of his brothers on the barbed-wire fence after a memorial service for North Korean family members near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas, in Paju, on January 31, 2014, on the occasion of Seolnal, the Korean Lunar New Year's day.
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Dancers perform a fire dragon dance in the shower of molten iron spewing firework-like sparks during a folk art performance to celebrate the traditional Chinese Spring Festival on the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year, at the Happy Valley amusement park in Beijing, on January 31, 2014.
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A performer dressed as a Qing dynasty emperor takes part in the re-enactment of the ancient Qing Dynasty ceremony in which emperors prayed for good harvest and fortune, during the opening of the temple fair for the Chinese New Year at Ditan Park, also known as the Temple of Earth, in Beijing, on January 30, 2014.
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